The present invention relates to a data processing unit and a data processing system, and more particularly to a data processing unit for use when it is necessary to synchronize data between a plurality of data processing terminals each with its own screen display capability and user attribute.
Many systems and methods, which synchronize data between different data processing terminals, have been proposed. For example, Japanese Patent Kokai Publication JP-A No. Hei 9-6693 discloses a method for automatically synchronizing schedule data between a desktop personal computer and a portable data processing terminal. The method adds operation attribute data that represents operation on data, as well as same-data identification attribute data that is specific to data, to data transferred between data processing units. During data synchronization among data processing units, the method searches for data that has been changed from the previous synchronized operation based on the operation attribute data and the same-data identification attribute data added to the data and, for the data obtained from the search, performs synchronization processing based on the operation attribute data and the same-data identification attribute data added to the data. Also, Japanese Patent Kokai Publication JP-A No. Hei 9-223060 discloses a method for comparing the revision of data stored on a portable terminal and the revision of the corresponding data stored in the data processing system and, upon detecting that, as a result of comparison, the data stored on the portable terminal is old, automatically updates the portable terminal data to the latest data by data updating means when the portable terminal is connected to the data processing system.
However, it has turned out in the course of investigation toward the present invention, that the prior art described above has the following problems. That is, the method according to the prior art may be conveniently used when the same information is displayed on all user""s displays of different terminals, but is not useful when information to be displayed differs slightly from terminal to terminal. For example, a schedule message saying xe2x80x9cfrom 10:00 to 12:00 on April 1, a meeting is to be held with the head of a department of company A and the chief of a section of company B in the 16th conference room at the head office to confirm the contents of the contractxe2x80x9d (information A) may be displayed on the screen of the display of a desktop personal computer at a time. However, on a portable terminal with a small display screen, the screen must be scrolled to display all this information.
In this case, a message saying xe2x80x9ca meeting is to be held in the 16th conference room at the head office from 10:00 to 12:00 on April 1xe2x80x9d (information B) would be enough on the portable terminal.
Portable terminals have become more versatile, ranging from notebook personal computers with the screen size at least 640xc3x97480 pixels to portable terminals with small screens similar to those of pagers. Some users use a plurality of terminals according to the situation.
In particular, an attempt to display a large amount of information on a small-size screen requires the user to do complicated operations to read all information. Sometimes, the user may want a reduced amount of display information. With a relatively lengthy message on a portable terminal with a small screen, the user does not always view an entire message, from beginning to end, because of complicated operations and, therefore, he or she sometimes fails to read important information.
Even when schedule data, which is synchronized, is displayed on different data processing terminals, the data must be automatically converted according to the attributes of each terminal. However, the technologies according to the prior art, such as those disclosed in Japanese Patent Kokai Publication JP-A No. Hei 9-6693 and Japanese Patent Kokai Publication JP-A No. Hei 9-223060, only save the same data on both terminals upon synchronization. Those technologies do not take attribute conversion into consideration.
In addition, to keep synchronization between data units, it is not enough to perform data conversion according to the conditions of both synchronizing units. For example, assume that, in the following discussion, all information about a meeting is saved on a desktop personal computer but that only the date and time are saved on a portable terminal.
In this case, data conversion between the personal computer and the terminal while synchronizing data on both units results in a serious problem of data loss as described below.
That is, when data is copied from the desktop personal computer to the portable terminal, unnecessary data is simply deleted. Conversely, when data is copied from the portable terminal to the personal computer, data is insufficient. On the portable terminal described above, information B does not contain information on the participants of the meeting. For example, when a desktop personal computer (called xe2x80x9cpersonal computer Axe2x80x9d) on which all the meeting information is stored is made to synchronize with a portable terminal on which meeting data composed only of information on the date/time and the place, the data on personal computer A becomes simplified when copied to the portable terminal with the result that information except the date/time and the place is lost.
If the portable terminal is made to synchronize with a desktop personal computer other than personal computer A (called xe2x80x9cpersonal computer Bxe2x80x9d), the information sent to personal computer B is the simplified meeting information.
Therefore, to save the meeting information stored on personal computer A onto personal computer B, personal computer A and personal computer B must be directly synchronized. When personal computer A is located in an office and personal computer B is located at home, it would be convenient to synchronize personal computer A and personal computer B via a portable terminal. This synchronization cannot be established by the conventional method.
Generally, the present invention seeks to solve the problems associated with the prior art described above. It is an object of the present invention to provide a data processing unit capable of synchronizing data between data processing units with different screen sizes and user attributes and, at the same time, changing information so that information may be displayed according to the respective data processing units.
According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a data display control method for use in a plurality of interconnected data processing units, each of which stores therein data synchronized and transferred between the plurality of data processing units and displays converted data on a display unit of the data processing unit, the converted data being produced by converting data based on a conversion rule for displaying data in a format suitable for a specification of the display unit of the data processing unit or a conversion rule for displaying the data in a format suitable for an attribute of the data processing unit and/or a user.
To achieve the above problems, in a second aspect of the present invention there is provided a data processing system composed of a plurality of interconnected data processing units, wherein each of the plurality of data processing units comprises:
a first storing unit storing therein synchronous data synchronized and transferred between the plurality of data processing units via communication control means;
a second storing unit pre-storing therein a conversion rule for displaying the synchronous data in a display format suitable for display unit specifications of the data processing unit;
conversion means for converting the synchronous data stored in the first storing unit to data corresponding to the display format suitable for displaying on the data processing unit based on the conversion rule; and a third storing unit for storing therein the converted data. In the data processing system, the converted data is displayed on the display unit of the data processing unit.
In a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a data processing system composed of a plurality of interconnected data processing units, wherein each of the plurality of data processing units comprises:
a first storing unit storing therein synchronous data synchronized and transferred between the plurality of data processing units via communication control means, the synchronous data including a conversion rule for displaying the synchronous data in a display format suitable for display unit specifications of the data processing unit and/or for a user attribute;
a second storing unit pre-storing therein attribute of the data processing unit and a user; conversion means for converting the synchronous data to data suitable for displaying on the data processing unit based on the conversion rule included in the synchronous data and on the attribute data stored in the second storing unit; and
a third storing unit storing therein the converted data,
and wherein the converted data is displayed on a display unit of the data processing unit.
The conversion rule may include display/non-display setting information for each of predetermined items constituting the synchronous data, and the conversion means may extract data of the items for which the display setting information is specified to create conversion data.
According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a data processing unit comprising: means for converting data according to screen display function information on a display unit of the data processing unit and/or user attribute information of the data processing unit; and storing unit storing unconverted data and converted data, wherein the unconverted data is used when synchronizing data with other terminals, and the converted data is used when displaying data on the display unit of the data processing unit.
According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a data processing unit comprising:
communication control means for transferring synchronous data to or from other data processing units, storing means for storing the synchronous data; data conversion rule storing means for storing a rule for converting the synchronous data according to screen display function information on a display of the data processing unit and/or user attribute information on the data processing unit; data conversion means for reading the synchronous data from the synchronous data storing means and for converting the synchronous data based on the data conversion rule; converted data storing means for storing the converted data; and display means for displaying the converted data on a screen.
According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a data processing unit comprising:
communication control means for transferring synchronous data to or from other data processing units; synchronized data storing means for storing the synchronous data; terminal/user attribute storing means for storing an attribute of the data processing unit and a user of the data processing unit, referred to as xe2x80x9cterminal/user attributexe2x80x9d hereinafter; data conversion means for converting the synchronous data read from the synchronous data storing means based on the terminal/user attribute; converted data storing means for storing data converted by the data conversion means; and display means for displaying the converted data.
The data processing unit may include instruction information for converting data based on the terminal/user attribute.
According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, there is provided a medium carrying a program which causes a data processing unit to: operate the program comprising:
(a) (a1) reading synchronous data from a storage unit in which the synchronous data to be transferred to or from other data processing units via a communication control unit is stored,
(a2) converting the synchronous data based on a conversion rule stored in a data conversion rule storing unit in which the conversion rule for converting the synchronous data according to screen display function information on a display of the data processing unit and/or a user attribute of the data processing unit is stored, and
(a3) outputting the converted data to a converted data storing unit; and
(b) controlling a display operation on a screen of the display unit based on the converted data stored in the converted data storing unit.
According to a eighth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a medium carrying a program which causes a data processing unit operate, the program comprising:
(a) (a1) reading synchronous data from a storage unit in which the synchronous data to be transferred to or from other data processing units via a communication control unit is stored,
(a2) converting the synchronous data based on a conversion rule for instructing that data be displayed in a format according to screen display function information on a display of the data processing unit and/or user attribute information and on the attribute information stored in a storage unit in which the user attribute information the data processing unit is stored, the conversion rule being included in the synchronous data, and
(a3) outputting the converted data to converted data storing means; and
(b) controlling a display operation on a screen of the display unit based on the converted data stored in the converted data storing unit.
The medium may be whatever can carry the program in a static, active or dynamic manner, or any carrier like carrier wave carrying program information as signals. The medium may be implemented as a network system or lines, either wired or wireless, or both.